“When someone doesn't show up, the people who wait sometimes tell stories about what might have happened and come to half believe the desertion, the abduction, the accident. Worry is a way to pretend that you have knowledge or control over what you don't--and it surprises me, even in myself, how much we prefer ugly scenarios to the pure unknown. Perhaps fantasy is what you fill up maps with rather than saying that they too contain the unknown.”

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About Rebecca Solnit

A California-based writer and essayist, Rebecca Solnit is best known for her incisive explorations of social justice, feminism, and the politics of place. Her work spans books like *A Field Guide to Getting Lost* and *Men Explain Things to Me*, blending sharp analysis with accessible prose.

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